ELCS welcomes new principal

ELIZABETHTOWN - Faculty and staff at Elizabethtown-Lewis Central School recently had a chance to get acquainted with their newest administrator.

Kenneth Hughes paid a visit there on June 18 as the recently hired as the principal for the school. Hughes will take over for current principal Scott Osborne, who, after two years heading the school, is resigning to take a position at Peru Central School.

A native of Lake George, Hughes said he was attracted to Elizabethtown because of its Adirondack setting.

"I did a lot of fishing and hunting with my father when I was a kid," said Hughes, "so I had a lot of affection for this part of the world."

Hughes said he intends to find a place to live in the district with his wife, four-year-old daughter and one-year-old son.

"My goal is to become 46er," said Hughes, noting how he looks forward to having his family settle in a wholesome place with plenty of access to arts, culture and the outdoors.

"There are a lot of great resources in this area," he said, "and I want my kids to be a part of that."

Hughes' experience in education began as a French and Spanish teacher, but leading professional workshops on technology use in the classroom encouraged him to go into administration.

"Teachers would call me and e-mail me and say 'you really helped me become a better teacher,'" he said. "I thought, 'Why not make the focus of my career helping other teachers?'"

He went on to get his administrative degree and has spent the last three years as an assistant principal at Greenwich High School near Sacandaga Lake. When he heard about a position at Elizabethtown, he jumped at the chance to be in charge of his own building.

Having spent most of his time dealing with students at the secondary level, Hughes, who stands at 6 feet 5 inches, said it will be different working with students who only come up to his knees; but it's an experience he's looking forward to.

"I love teaching and I love working with kids," he said. "This is going to be a great job for me; a great position."

Though he believes the school is mostly up to date with its use of technology in the classroom, Hughes hopes he can use his background to help ELCS teachers wishing to become even more tech-saavy.

"I just want to find out what's working really well now and help move it forward," he said.

Hughes also shares the high regard that many faculty have had for his predecessor.

"I'm impressed with what Mr. Osborne has done with the school over the past two years," Hughes said, "and I look forward to continuing a lot of the good things that he's done."

School superintendent Gail Else said parents, teachers, and school board members were all impressed with the enthusiasm and

"Ken has all the of the skills to easily carry on the things that Scott initiated," said Else. "I feel Scott is leaving the student body in very capable hands."